Golden Crescendo
by Wotcher-Tonks
Summary: Response to the 50 Art of Words Challenge on Memory Butterfly Forums. Teddy/Victoire, 50 chapters. It started with a storm... title taken from a poem by e.e.cummings ON HIATUS
1. Midnight

**A/N This story is a response to the 50 Art of Words Challenge on Memory Butterfly forum. There will be 50 chapters, one for each prompt.**

**Disclaimer- None of the characters belong to me, unless I make up an OC.**

**All quotations at the beginning of the chapters were found courtesy of The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations.**

"_At the midnight in the silence of the sleep-time,_

_When you set your fancies free_." –Robert Browning

Chapter One- Midnight

That sultry summer night was the night I fell in love with Teddy Lupin.

That tempestuous summer was one of beginnings-of new paths and directions my heart had never followed. It all started with a storm. Or rather, with my fear of storms.

All my life, I had been afraid of storms. The noises of thunder crashing and lightning striking never failed to bring a cold sweat and shivers to my otherwise idyllic summer nights.

Normally, I bore the fear alone. What would my family say, with our Gryffindor heritage of bravery, if it was discovered that I had a fear of a simple cycle of nature? Deep down I knew they would love me just the same, but still, I refused to tell them. No one knew, and I hoped it would stay that way. And so the terror continued until _he_ stopped it.

It was late, about midnight, and the house was still. Mum, Dad, Dominique, and Louis were all deeply asleep as the tumult outside pounded and shook the small cottage, the waves seemingly crashing in our ears.

Teddy was asleep too, on the couch in our den. He stayed at our house some weekend nights in the summer, and others at other family members of ours, as it was lonely in his house, just him and his gran, who many thought was beginning to go mad with grief. He preferred our house, since we didn't have masses of infants as all the rest of my family. Dominique and Louis were one and two years younger than me, respectively.

The thunder boomed again, and I let out a small whimper. Yes, here I was, a Weasley, eleven years old, and still afraid of _weather_!

I had to do something. I shook myself a little, and decided to go talk to Teddy, who I had been friends with since birth. I knew he wouldn't mock me.

My family didn't know I was afraid of storms. Even when I was small, I kept it to myself. After hearing all the war stories, who would share a fear like that?

I tip-toed out of my room silently, and made my way to the dark den where Teddy lay. I leaned over the couch, hesitant to disturb his slumber.

He lay peacefully, with a hint of a smile on his face, as if he were dreaming of something amusing. A lock of mousy brown hair lay over his eyes, eyes that would be grey when open, a stormy gray, that darkened and lightened with his mood. He had his mouth open slightly, and a small snore was emitted at odds with the thunder.

"Teddy?" I whispered.

His eyes flew open immediately, as if he were only pretending to be in comatose slumber.

Instantly alert, he whispered back, "Victoire?"

I stared at him as lightning lit the room and cast an eerie glow onto his features

He seemed to understand at once and whispered again, "The storm?"

I nodded, almost paralyzed with fear.

"Well," he said, stretching like a cat. "You know what always helps me when I'm scared?"

"What?" I asked in a small voice.

"Hot cocoa. Works like a charm."

"Really?" I said timidly, jumping as thunder suddenly sounded.

"Absolutely. Come on, let's go find some." He stretched out a hand, and we went to the kitchen to find cocoa.

That night I found the cure for fear. Chocolate.

And every night that summer, and for many years afterward, every time there was a storm, I could expect Teddy's owl, Achilles, to deliver a parcel of cocoa mix to my window. Achilles didn't seem to mind. He loved Teddy. And, starting that night, I did too.

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**A/N This chapter has been edited with the help of lyin'. Thanks for bearing with me, readers!**

**Reviews help me to make the story better. Tell me what you thought, tell me what I need to fix, tell me if you absolutely hated this!**


	2. Cuckoo

"_I am ashes where once I was fire._"-Lord Byron

**Chapter Two: Cuckoo**

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Whenever Andromeda went through a particularly bad spell, Teddy Lupin felt guilty. He stayed close to her and comforted her as best he could, and let her tell him stories from happier times, but he couldn't quite shake the feeling that she resented him a little bit.

She showered him with attention, yet seemed afraid to get too close. He thought he understood why-it must be hard to feel secure, to love and trust again when your loved ones have all been taken from you-but he also thought it was more that she thought of him as the catalyst to her family's happiness, as things only went downhill after he was born.

She never called him Ted, and on the rare occasion somebody did, he saw the fleeting pain in her eyes that she briskly concealed.

When it came to him, he thought, Andromeda walked a tightrope between wanting him near but afraid of closeness.

He knew what others said about her: that she was crazy, gone mad with grief. People called her cuckoo and batty when they didn't know Teddy was near.

Most were the Slytherins Teddy had to share some classes with, but the Bat Bogey Hex that his Aunt Ginny had taught him came in handy on those occasions. You could say he was pretty good at it by now.

Now most people knew- you don't call Teddy Lupin's gran a madwoman.

He tried his best to cheer her up, to bring some life and color into the solemn crypt of his house. He wore bright hair colors, talked loudly, and painted the walls glaring colors with help from Uncle George, but it all seemed to fall on the deaf ears of Andromeda Tonks.

Merlin, how he was lonely, during the years she raised him until he could go to Hogwarts! Now he spent long summers and holidays with her in the echoing silence of his mother's childhood home.

He spent as much time as he could out of the house, with his quasi-family, the Potter-Weasleys. And he tried to get his gran to socialize with them, but she seemed to prefer simply sitting in her favorite chair and staring into unknown space where he knew she was thinking of his mum and his granddad.

Could silence be a noise? Teddy knew it was-a deafening one too, one that clamored and vied for occupation in your very thoughts, until your life was silent and bleak.

He feared for his gran, and so did Uncle Harry, who once took her to St.Mungo's to make sure she was "ok". The healer had come out an hour later, and with shining eyes told them that it was grief, sorrow, and something called survivor's guilt. The best they could do was to spend time with her. And Teddy, who was about ten at the time, sank lower and lower in his chair. He knew, even then, that it was his fault. All of it.

And he knew it; even though deep down he knew Andromeda loved him, he knew that it was his fault. He should try harder to cheer her, he should try not to remind her of his mum and dad, or his granddad.

But oh, how hard it was, when the slightest mention of a commonplace thing, or a story, or almost anything, brought fresh tears to Andromeda's weary eyes.

She tried too, with little gifts that she knew he would like, and books that he took a fancy to, but they still didn't fill the void of solitude that she had created, the sphere she had built around her broken, mutilated heart.

And he tried ever harder. He threw himself into life with enough enthusiasm for the two of them. He told her jokes, read her stories he had written, played pranks with Uncle George's merchandise countless times, and still the fog enveloping her was thick, and heavy, until he almost thought that it hung around the whole house.

When he was little, he used to check between the blinds, check and see whether the fog had seeped outside, to infect the world. It never had, and all he saw was their wilted garden, which he spent long hours trying to restore and renew with the help of Professor Longbottom.

He sometimes sat a sleepless night on the roof, and wondered why. Why did his parents leave, leave him with a name to live up, leave him with a miserable gran who was reminded of too much by him. Leave him lonely.

And that was why Teddy, who was normally vivacious and lively, at least during the school term, came to love and resent his grandmother, as she loved and resented him.


	3. Burn

**Chapter 3: Burn**

_**  
**Love is a fire._

_But whether it is going to warm your heart, or burn down your house, you can never tell_.-Anonymous

* * *

The weeks slipped by, and suddenly it was late August.

I had been to Diagon Alley before, of course, but never in anticipation of a school term. Being the eldest, this would be the first school shopping excursion of the Potter-Weasley clan.

In attendance were me, Mum, Dad, Uncle Harry, Aunt Ginny, and Teddy. The others had declined, having small children. They agreed to meet us at Shell Cottage; Teddy the first to arrive.

His hair was a vivid royal blue, but his pale face showed signs of unhappiness, which he tried to cover up with a broad smile. Teddy was always depressed during the summer, cooped up with his grief-stricken gran. I yearned to take his sadness away, and bear it myself. Giving him a hug, I tried to comfort him the best I could with the gesture. I think it worked, because his face seemed to relax a bit.

My love for Teddy had only grown over the summer. I could only hope that it was not noticeable to him, and to my well-meaning but mischievous family.

We set off through the Floo Network arriving in the Leaky Cauldron to a bustling bar and a mouthful of ashes. Hannah Longbottom, the landlady and sometimes barmaid, waved cheerfully at us from behind the bar. We waved back, and set off again.

Once we arrived in Diagon Alley, we were greeted by the fronts of cheerful shops.

Dad decided that we should stop at Madame Malkin's first, and after we came out of there loaded with my new robes, we headed to Flourish and Blotts for all the books and parchment I would need.

Flourish and Blotts was the biggest bookstore in Diagon Alley and had thousands upon thousands of books. It was heaven. Teddy bee-lined straight to the nearest shelf, and was instantly absorbed in a copy of **The Use of Cauldrons in Potion-Making: A Complete History**.

I watched him for a moment. His royal blue hair fell into his eyes and he shook it away to continue reading.

I could have watched him all day, but my family would _definitely_ notice.

After getting my and Teddy's school books, (he was still reading like the Ravenclaw he was) and a few books for pleasure reading, I went up to him and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Teddy."

He started, and looking around wildly, his eyes rested on me.

I could feel my face starting to flush as he looked at me and I stammered, "Er- we're ready to go now."

It was true. The adults were waiting at the shop entrance; Aunt Ginny's foot was tapping. Teddy broke his gaze and looked over at her. Smiling, he said, "All right. Let me purchase these, then."

He had selected a number of dense tomes, and so had I. We divided the school books and set off to the counter. He was still smiling a little. Did I mention Teddy had a very disarming smile?

The wizard at the counter protested loudly when we pulled out the money we had been given for school supplies. "Free of charge for the friends of Harry Potter!"

Teddy insisted on paying, but the wizard was stubborn. Sighing, Teddy finally acquiesced.

We left the shop, loaded now with robes and books, the wizard calling out after us, "Thank you so much! For everything!"

The adults went ahead to the Quidditch store, and giving us each enough money, they told us to meet them at Uncle George's shop at noon.

Ollivander's was now a busy shop, one full of children in need of their first wands. I was extremely excited. Soon I would be able to do magic!

Ollivander was a stooped, wrinkled elderly man, whose silver eyes gleamed softly in the dim light of the wand shop. He had a soft voice, and he seemed to represent hidden power, and archaic secrets of long past times.

"A wand, Ms. Weasley?"

"Why, hello, Mr. Lupin. Eleven and a half inches, willow, springy, unicorn hair. Your parents-"I saw Teddy wince almost imperceptibly "-Nymphadora had a twelve and a quarter, hornbeam, stiff, dragon heartstring. Remus had an eleven and three quarters long wand, ash, bendy, dragon heartstring."

I stared at him in awe. Teddy hunched his shoulders and said softly, "Don't call her Nymphadora."

I patted his shoulder reassuringly, and Ollivander seemed not to notice, as he hurried along the tall shelves, pulling down box upon box. I waved each wand dutifully, until finally I waved one that felt warm in my hand, and produced blue sparks. Teddy and Ollivander clapped.

"Rosewood, twelve inches, springy, unicorn hair."

I paid for the wand, and slipping it into the box, Mr. Ollivander said, "Send my regards to your uncle Harry."

We promised him we would, and went to the apothecary, and the quill shop, and lastly to Eeylops Owl Emporium, where I found a beautifully colored striped owl. After a lot of thought, Teddy and I decided to name her Athena, whose mascot was the owl.

We were near Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes and Teddy took my hand and pulled me inside, laughing at the exuberant decorations at the front of the shop. I was surprised, and then decided to relish this moment.

Uncle George popped up out of nowhere in a cloud of smoke. Teddy and I shouted in surprise and delight, and went to explore the shop.

Fascinating products beckoned us from every angle. Objects whirled in the air, some emitting high squeals while others scampered around the customer's feet.

Next to the counter, a picture frame held a large picture labeled **Fred Weasley, co-creator. Gave his life for our freedom, May 2, 1998**.

In the photo, Fred was making faces and popping in and out of the picture.

Teddy picked up a thing labeled **Portable Flames -Non harmful, trick flames**! The label boasted. Teddy opened the can, and the flames burst out, singeing his eyebrows off. Teddy swore and popped his eyebrows back to normal. I was doubled over laughing, but I heard him mutter, "Weasleys."

We made our purchases, (Teddy had many), and headed out of the store. He was happy, and I was happy.

He still hadn't let go of my hand.


	4. Whitewash

**A/N – Sorry I haven't updated in so long-I've been on vacation and suffering writer's block. Finally, some ideas hit, and the story resumes. Thanks for being patient, awesome, forgiving readers! **

* * *

_Oh what a tangled web we weave,  
When first we practise to deceive!_

_Marmion. Canto vi. Stanza 17. -Sir Walter _

_Nothing makes us so lonely as our secrets. Paul Tournier_

**Chapter Four-Whitewash**

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It was the night before his third year at Hogwarts began when Teddy had the first dream.

He had had difficulty falling asleep that night, and when he finally did it was restless and more tiring than staying awake.

He tossed and turned, tossed some more and turned a bit more, when the dream appeared, as sudden as a bolt of lightning.

_He was hurtling through what seemed like endless stretches of space, of time…_

_Finally he landed._

0000000

_A teenaged boy with a twisted face was holding out his arm, towards Teddy, eyes squeezed shut as if he was in anticipation of something painful, yet something that he had wanted._

_And suddenly a voice from behind Teddy, a high, thin, cold voice that Teddy dared not turn around to investigate its source, declared, "Carve Famulatus!"_

_The teenaged boy let out a short cry of pain that he quickly stifled as a mark began twisting, carving, spinning grotesquely around his left arm. _

_The mark was shaped like a black skull, with a serpentine tongue protruding from the sickening mouth. _

_Teddy couldn't look away- he was rooted, glued to the spot in horror and terrifying curiosity. _

_He recognized the mark, how could he not, being a child of war, as the mark of Voldemort's supporters. The Dark Mark._

_But who was receiving it? And why was Teddy watching something from decades ago?_

_As if in answer, the cold voice spoke again._

"_Very well, Dolohov-", and Teddy's ears roared so loudly that he couldn't hear the rest of what the frozen voice said._

_Dolohov was the man who had murdered his father._

_Dolohov, who had committed terrible, unspeakable crimes in the name of Voldemort. _

_Dolohov, who had escaped justice and fled, whose whereabouts eluded even the most gifted Aurors._

000000

_The room spun, and the vision was replaced with a new one._

_Dolohov, twisted face alight with sadistic glee, was issuing jets of green light at two men who looked like Weasleys. Gideon and Fabian Prewett, Mrs.Weasley's brothers who had been murdered during the first war. Teddy tried to cry out, tried to help the brothers who were dodging and ducking the rapid jets, but he was ice-completely paralyzed. The dance didn't last long, and a jet hit one. The other cursed Dolohov, who laughed, ducked and killed him, twisted face still grinning._

0000000

_The room spun again._

_Dolohov was older now, in Azkaban, where he was slipping out of a large hole in the wall with other Death Eaters, as the Dementors placidly watched._

0000000

_Now, Dolohov was dueling a grave looking man with hair streaked with grey, who looked weary but determined._

_Dad._

_Teddy tried to move once more, and once more found he couldn't, as his father fell to a green jet of light. _

_Teddy shouted in grief, and watched helplessly as his father slumped to the ground._

0000000

_A short man was dueling Dolohov, and Dolohov fell. The man then was struck by a spell from another Death Eater. _

_Unknown to everybody, Dolohov moved feebly, then, recovering his senses, leapt up. His eyes darted around anxiously, and Teddy longed to stop him. _

_Dolohov chanted an incantation softly to himself, and in a flash of smoke, he was gone._

0000000

_Dolohov was sitting in a cave, somewhat older and leaner, but twisted face still alight with a savage fire. _

_There were other caves nearby, and Teddy saw peaks. _

_Dolohov was gazing at a sodden newspaper. Teddy could see the date on it clearly._

_August 30__th__,2011._

0000000

Teddy woke with a start, gasping, drenched in cold sweat and feeling icy all over.

Dolohov.

But he couldn't seriously be having dreams like that, could he? Visions?

No way, he told himself.

But it seemed so real…

00000000

They were all getting ready to board the Hogwarts Express, and Victoire was already in her school robes, blonde hair halfway down her back.

Teddy was pale and grim looking, his hair his usual royal blue, but his face even paler than normal and pronounced bags under his eyes.

No one seemed to really notice that he was different that morning, but Victoire did look at him inquiringly when he greeted her.

He pretended he hadn't noticed her eyes' inquiry, and returned her greeting with a tired, "Wotcher, Victoire."

He knew he was in for it though when they were in the compartment. His friend Frank Longbottom never rode the Hogwarts Express, since he lived at Hogwarts, so Teddy usually passed the train ride in solitary contemplation of the view out the window.

This time, he was expected to stay with Victoire, and while he certainly didn't mind her, he definitely minded how perceptive she was, and was afraid she would pick up on his haunting dream.

And sure enough, she did, asking him as soon as they got in the compartment and stowed their trunks what was wrong.

"Nothing. Just couldn't get to sleep last night. You know, nerves," he offered feebly.

"Nerves?" she scoffed.

He _knew_ that that wouldn't pass with her.

"What happened, Teddy?" she asked again, her piercing blue eyes scrutinizing him.

"Nothing, I said! Just a bad dream."

She gave a huff of exasperation and threw herself down into the seat next to him.

"Nothing is ever nothing with you, Teddy Lupin," she said suddenly.

"Merlin, Victoire, I said that it was nothing! Why can't you just leave me alone?"

"Because," she paused, and Teddy turned away to watch the landscape swiftly flying past the window. He leaned his forehead on the cool glass, and willed himself to be calm.

"Because we're friends, and friends tell each other everything."

He felt suddenly angry. There was no way she would want to be friends with him if she found out he was having dreams about Death Eaters. She was too innocent to hear about that kind of stuff, at least for now, and he wasn't going to be the one to darken her days with his visions of death.

"Teddy," she whispered, "you can tell me. I can help. You helped me when I was scared, remember?"

"Who said I was scared?" he retorted, and immediately regretted it.

"Well," she began, looking apprehensive.

"Well," he mocked, not turning from the window. If he looked at her face now, within minutes it would all be out.

"I said it was nothing, Victoire! If you were my friend, you would leave me the bloody hell alone!"

This time he turned, and as he unwillingly met her gaze, he felt angrier, but at himself.

She was still looking calmly at him, her blue eyes full of pity and empathy.

Teddy Lupin hated pity. Especially from Victoire.

He stomped out of the compartment, and as he looked back, he saw Victoire, still sitting there, gazing out the window with a tear running down her cheek, yet her eyes still full of understanding and that blasted pity.

He felt horrible then, but still he walked away and pretended he hadn't seen.

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A/N-Please, make my day and review. Just tell me what you liked, didn't like, where you think the story is going...


	5. Sunbathe

Chapter Five: Sunbathe

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_ When the Moon fell in love with the Sun  
All was golden in the sky  
All was golden when the day met the night_

_When the Moon found the Sun  
He looked like he was barely hanging on  
While her eyes saved his life  
In the middle of summer_

_Well, he was just hanging around  
Then he fell in love  
And he didn't know how  
But he couldn't get out_

_So he said, "Would it be alright,  
If we just sat and talked for a little while?  
If in exchange for your time  
I give you this smile"_

_So she said, "Hey that's ok,  
As long as you can make a promise not to break  
My little heart and  
Leave me all alone  
In the summer"_

-When the Day Met the Night, Panic! at the Disco

* * *

He flung himself into the first compartment he saw, throwing himself down onto the seat carelessly. Damn it all. Damn it all to hell.

The dream floated into his mind, floated past his unwilling eyes.

But was it a dream? He didn't think so. It had seemed much too real to be a dream. Dreams were hazy things, wishes and hopes, flying without a broomstick or having a superpower. Not visions of fugitive murderers.

What was wrong with him, to dream things like that? Was he sick in the head, crazy with loneliness?

No. He couldn't be. He had Frank, his best friend...and Victoire. Correction: he _had _Victoire. Probably not any more, with his outburst. She was just too damn pure for his messed up life. It would be like rubbing dirt into a silk cloth, his confiding in her.

And, he suspected, she was more to him than a friend. Damn his wild emotions. Damn them to hell.

He had enough troubles without adding that to his plate.

Besides, she was too good for him. She was the sun, and he was the moon, a cold, lonely orb, and she was a blaze of fire and beauty.

When did he start being so poetic?

Probably around the time he started liking Victoire.

He had to tell someone. Because, even though it was likely no one would believe him, he had to tell someone, before the venomous dream ate him from the inside. He could feel it already, chipping away at his happiness, his contentment.

And, he suspected, it wasn't just a dream. It was real.

You _had_ to tell someone if you saw a robbery. You _had_ to tell someone if you saw someone attack someone else. You _had_ to tell.

But just who did you report to when you had a vision of the whereabouts of a reviled Death Eater?

He could tell Uncle Harry. From what he had gathered from eavesdropping on the adults' conversations over the years, Harry had had visions too.

But that was different. Harry was the Boy Who Lived.

He was just Teddy Lupin, son of a werewolf.

Harry was a special case. Teddy would probably just be dismissed as a lonely orphan with an overactive imagination. And if Gran ever found out, she would get even worse.

Teddy Lupin had to protect his Gran, if he never did anything else.

Damn Dolohov. Damn him to hell.

Teddy's stomach clenched with anger, with a violent desire to hurt. Because _he_ hurt.

His fists clenched, and he closed his eyes, breathing deeply. Emotions had to be mastered.

And the compartment door opened.

Victoire slipped in, all grace and beauty. Teddy knew it was her without even opening his eyes.

"What part of 'leave me the bloody hell alone' didn't you understand?"

"Probably the 'alone' part," she said, and he could tell she was shrugging.

She sat down next to him, and her scent wafted to his nose. Something flowery, he thought, but had no idea what.

"I know something's bothering you," she said, and the sentence hung in the air.

"Really?" he said sarcastically, and she responded with a sigh.

"Want a Chocolate Frog?" she asked, pulling a package out.

Damn chocolate. She knew, everyone knew, that Teddy Lupin was powerless against chocolate.

"Fine," he said stiffly.

Her cool, light fingers pressed one into his hand. He could feel her gaze on him, analyzing him. The girl was too bloody perceptive for her own good.

As he took a bite, she startled him.

"A dream?"

He choked in surprise.

"I'll take that as a yes," she said smugly.

"How do you know? Maybe the Frog's stale."

She laughed, and it tinkled. Teddy almost smiled in response, but he stopped himself.

"You have dark circles under your eyes. You didn't sleep well last night. As a connoisseur of fears-" -she laughed again- "I have determined that it was a bad dream."

His silence confirmed it.

So he told her. Everything. She sounded worried, frightened, and sympathetic at turns, and that helped a little. Someone did care.

She agreed. "You can't really tell anyone, Teddy. No one will believe you."

He opened his eyes at last, and looked into hers.

She read the question in his eyes, and said, "Yes. I do believe you."

And he closed his eyes, feeling better. Victoire was his ally. She chattered about books they could look in, and Teddy found himself hoping fervently that she would be in Ravenclaw.

"Come on, Teddy!"

He opened his eyes again. The train had stopped, and people rushed past in the corridors. Teddy was suddenly brought back to Earth. It had been a little world of the two of them, the moon and the sun, and he was not ready to stop basking in her radiance.

So he followed her out of the compartment, saying, "I really hope you're in Ravenclaw, Victoire."

Upon which she stopped, turned around, and gifted him with a beam. _A sunbeam,_ he thought. Then, _again with the poetry._

He snapped out of it when someone shoved him, yelling, "Move, Lupin!"

So he followed his sun out of the train.

* * *

Meh. Short, but hopefully good.

Updates are a lot slower, as you may have noticed, due to school. Yuck.

:D


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